Turkey gets 'conditional' green light to join EU

TURKEY got a conditional 'yes' from the European Commission in its bid to join the EU yesterday, 40 years after it first applied for membership.

The mainly Muslim country, which would become the EU's biggest member, was given no promises or guarantees of if and when it might join.

"The commission's answer is yes ... it is a conditional yes," European Commission President Romano Prodi said, presenting his report to the European Parliament.